Talking Horses: Hayley Turner's case suggests jockeys get it tougher than trainers

Atzeni signs with influential jockey’s agent

Andrea Atzeni has joined kingmaker jockeys’ agent Tony Hind in the hope of making a charge at the champion jockey’s title next year. Asked about rumours circulating to that effect in Newmarket on Friday, Hind confirmed that Atzeni was now part of his powerful stable of Flat-racing riders.

“That’s his ambition, he wants to be champion,” Hind said. “He’s asked for my services to help him carry it out.”

Hind has been responsible for the champion Flat jockey in seven of the last 12 seasons. Having booked rides for the high profile pair of Richard Hughes and Ryan Moore, he then helped Jim Crowley become champion in 2016 after starting the year as a 66-1 shot.

Atzeni is on offer at 25-1 for next year’s title with William Hill but those odds now seem likely to shorten. The Italian’s skills have been much admired for several years and he has been a regular winner of high-profile races, while just lacking the number of winners to make a challenge for the title.

His biggest success so far has been Postponed’s King George at Ascot in 2015, part of his fruitful association with the trainer Roger Varian. He won back to back St Legers on Kingston Hill and Simple Verse, won the Racing Post Trophy four years in a row and racked up six more Group One wins this year.

Atzeni is spending the winter riding abroad, most recently in Hong Kong last weekend. Hind plans to sit down with him and make a plan before next year’s title race begins in May.

Today’s best bets, by Chris Cook

It was interesting to see a number of folk on my Twitter timeline responding to the Hayley Turner verdict yesterday by comparing her case with that of David Evans. In most cases, the feeling seemed to be one of puzzlement as to why her punishment, a three-month suspension from riding, was so much tougher than his, a £3,000 fine.

Turner was placing bets while she was licensed as a jockey and I don’t want to downplay the significance of that; it was a mistake, for which she will now pay. But she was, after all, merely messing around with fivers and tenners and there was no evidence to suggest that she was trying to profit from inside information, even though one would imagine she was as well placed as anyone to get some of that.

In Evans’s case, the troublesome wager was £6,000. That’s twice as much, in one go, as Turner bet in the whole 18-month history of her Paddy Power account.

Moreover, Evans was backing one of his own horses, got a better price than was available to anyone else because of his good relationship with the bookie and did so whilst knowing that another fancied runner in the race (which he also trained) would be a non-runner.

Which of these cases presents the greater threat to the integrity of racing? As a punter, which of these cases worries you more? I’m guessing it’s the extremely hard-nosed trainer rather than the part-time rider who announces some of her bets on the telly.

It’s just so easy to punish jockeys and British racing has made it a very comfortable habit. Jockeys get suspended every day at the races. Trainers and owners may have benefited from the infraction but generally suffer no consequence.

I understand a certain reluctance to ban trainers or even suspend them from making entries because it’s not just the individual who suffers. You’re shooting a hole in a business on which many people may rely for their income.

But it’s also true to say that trainers are closer to the centre of power in horse racing. Those who make and enforce the rules, I believe, would see themselves as having more in common with trainers than with jockeys. Before each race, trainers, owners and stewards mingle in the paddock, chatting away. Then the jockeys arrive and give the peaks of their caps a little tug to show respect.

Oh well, on to today’s action, which centres on lovely Cheltenham. I was surprised to see Mysteree (2.30) declared for the staying handicap chase because he goes well fresh and Michael Scudamore was talking about going straight to the Welsh National. But this race, which the trainer won four years ago with Monbeg Dude, cut up so badly that he felt he had to go for it.

Mysteree is pretty high in the handicap these days after a very successful last winter but he should get the testing ground he loves. The novice Wotzizname is a threat but this is quite a test for him.

In the closing handicap hurdle, the market seems to expect Colin Tizzard to get improvement out of The Dutchman, who was formerly with Sandy Thomson and has had a tongue tie fitted since moving down south. But his only hurdles win was nearly two years ago and it’s not at all clear to me that he has any secrets from anyone.

I prefer the 11-2 about Arthur’s Gift (3.40), who has improved for each of three runs in handicaps for Nigel Twiston-Davies, scoring twice under today’s pilot, Tom Humphries. He needs to improve for the extra half-mile but looks very much as though he will do so. He seemed to win in spite of the tight circuit and right-hand bends at Market Rasen last month.

At Doncaster, I wonder if this is finally the time that Alvarado (2.10) comes good again. Odds of 7-2 are meagre compensation for backing a horse that hasn’t won for four years, although he has been placed in two Grand Nationals and two Scottish Nationals in that time.

Now that he’s rising 13, I doubt that connections are saving him for those big spring targets but will take what they can. He should be sharper for his running-on third at Exeter in October and has dropped to a handy mark. He’s 7-2.

Tips for Friday races

Doncaster

11.50 Kilronan Castle 12.25 Don Lami 1.00 Stowaway Magic 1.35 Clondaw Kaempfer 2.10 Alvarado 2.45 Manny Owens 3.20 Big Penny

Bangor
12.00 Champagne James 12.35 Knocknamona 1.10 Forest Des Aigles 1.45Waterlord 2.20 Tawseef 2.55 Virginia Chick 3.30 Ofcourseiwill

Cheltenham
12.10 Western Ryder 12.45 Sizing Tennessee 1.20 Okotoks 1.55 Song Saa 2.30Mysteree (nb) 3.05 Cantlow 3.40 Arthur’s Gift (nap)

Chelmsford
5.45 Ertidaad 6.15 Trick Shot Jenny 6.45 Dance Me 7.15 Knight Errant 7.45Bahamian Heights 8.15 Stylish Dancer 8.45 Pass The Cristal